"Wiener Blut" (also called "Vienna Blood" or "Viennese Spirit"), Op. 354, is a waltz written by Johann Strauss II. It was first performed by Strauss on April 22, 1873. The waltz was dedicated to the wedding of Emperor Franz Joseph I's daughter, Archduchess Gisela Louise Maria, and Prince Leopold of Bavaria. Historians note that this waltz marked Strauss's first performance with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. For many years, the Philharmonic had avoided working with Strauss because it did not want to be linked to "light" or "popular" music. The celebration for the wedding took place at the Musikverein Hall, which today hosts the Neujahrskonzert.
"Wiener Blut" is one of Strauss's later works that was not written for the stage. At this time in his career, Strauss focused more on creating music for performances on stage rather than for ballrooms. Before writing this waltz, Strauss had already composed at least two operettas, and "Die Fledermaus" was still to come.
Description
The waltz begins with a happy and lively melody in the key of C major, with short hints of music from later parts of the waltz. The soft and gentle melody that is easy to recognize has a smooth and graceful style with more energy than his previous pieces. Waltz 2A is calmer, but Waltz 2B brings more excitement, matching the mood listeners know from the beginning of the piece. As a piece meant for a royal wedding, the waltz includes grand moments in Section 3, where a bold melody in C major is followed by an exciting Viennese tune in F major. This waltz has four two-part sections, unlike the five sections used by Josef Lanner and his father Johann Strauss I. The fourth section starts softly in F major, leading to a loud climax with cymbals. The ending repeats parts from sections 2 and 3 in the key of E major before returning to the first melody. The ending is exciting, with a loud timpani roll and bright brass music.
In popular culture
- Vienna Blood is a 1942 German film based on an operetta; the waltz with the same name plays an important role in the movie.
- The waltz appears repeatedly in the 1936 film Ladies in Love.
- The waltz is used many times as a theme in the 1941 Alfred Hitchcock film Suspicion.
- In the 1945 anti-Nazi cartoon Herr Meets Hare, Bugs Bunny (dressed as Brünhilde) and Hermann Göring (dressed as Siegfried) dance to the song.
- An album (1997) by the Austrian Neue Deutsche Härte band Stahlhammer.
- A song written by the German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein from the album Liebe ist für Alle Da (2009).